God chose Moses at age 80 (retirement age?), to lead the Israelite slaves out of Egypt, and what about Ruth a non Jew, being the grandmother of the famous King David. When we look at these and the many other examples of God’s creative thinking it should not come as a shock to see Jesus deal kindly with children, women, tax collectors and the socially unacceptable. Yet it was his compassion towards the disadvantaged in society and his claim to be God which incensed the religious leaders of his day. If only they had read and understood what we call the Old Testament, they would have seen that Jesus was the fulfilment of the Old Testament prophecies, but ‘the rest they say is history’.
While writing and researching Bible Stories For Big Kids, I was reminded again and again of a God who loves and cares for people and all of his creation and with this background, the stories and teachings of Jesus just come alive. For that reason alone, I recommend reading of Bible Stories For Big Kids as it is a good introduction to the world of the Old Testament.
God has always been part of what happens in our world, and instead of asking the question ‘why doesn’t God do something now about all the atrocities and disasters in our world today?’ reading the Old Testament has given me more insight into our responsibilities towards solving the world’s problems.
What do you think?